Brick-forming machine.



a. E. RICHMOND.

BRICK FORMING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED JULY 27, I916.

Patented July 17, 1917.

3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

Patented July 17,1917.

3SHEETS- SHEET Z- WIT/M58858 4 TI'ORNEYS G. E. RICHMOND.

BRICK FORMING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 27. I916. 193mm. Patented July 17, 1917. I I 3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

lllllllqni may??? WITNESSES nomvvs GEORGE E. RICHMOND, OF AUSTIN, TEXAS.

BRICK-FORMING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Tatent.

Application filed July 27, 1916. Serial No. 111,610.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, GEORGE E. RICHMOND, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Austin, in the county of Travis and State of Texas, have invented a new and Improved Brick-Forming Machine, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to brick-forming machines, and has reference more particularly to a machine for forming bricks of an agglomeration, such as garbage. The object thereof is to provide an automatic machine which issimple, inexpensive, and eflicient.

With the above and other objects in view, the nature of which will morefully appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts as herein fully described, illustrated and claimed. In the accompanying drawings, forming part of the application, similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of my machine, certain portions of which are broken out to show the details of construction;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal, fragmentary, vertical section through the machine;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on line 3-3, Fig. 1; r Fig. 4 is a section on line H, Fig. 1; Fig. 5 is a section on line 5-5, Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a section on line 66, Fig. 2; and

Fig. 7 is a section on line 77, Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawings, 8 is the outlet end of the feed press which terminates with a rectangular-shaped face plate 9 on which brick molds 10 move to be packed with garbage. Each brick mold is provided with side flanges 11 for securing it to flanged links 12 of an endless chain. Each chain is engaged by three sprockets 13, 14, and 15 respectively. The sprockets 13 are mounted on a shaft- 16 which is disposed transversely of the frame-17, and to which shaft 16 motion is imparted through a worm drive 17 from a drive shaft 18. The sprockets 14: and 15 are the guiding sprockets which maintain the molds 10 on the face plate 9 during their movement.

To prevent a to and fro movement of the chain between the sprockets 14 and 15, tracks 19 are provided in parallel spaced relation with the face plate, one for" each chain. Each of the tracks is carried by a frame 2Q which rests on the surface plate 9 adjacent the edge, substantially through the entire length thereof. It is secured at one end to the plate by a hinge 21. A slotted member 22 is pivotally secured to the other end of each member, the slot being engaged by an extension of the face plate 9. A spring 23 located in the slot draws the frame member against the face plate. A screw'2i is provided in the slotted member to vary the compression of the spring. The springs 23 allow the frame members 20 to move away from the face plate when a hard substance, such as iron, glass, tin, or other similar substances which are commonly found in of the molds.

The opening of the mold is of the same size as the opening of the presser feed. A plunger 25 engages the opening. It carries a rod 26 the end of which enters slots 27 provided in side wall. extensions 28. Pins 29 are provided across the slot to prevent the plunger 25 from being forced out from the mold when the material is fed thereinto from the feed press. The inner ends of the slots prevent the plunger from dropping through the mold. The compression of the spring 23 is suflicient to withstand the feeding pressure which packs the molds with material.

As the chain travels on the sprocket wheels, the packed molds are conveyed from the feeder over a bed 30 mounted on the frame 17 between the sprocket wheels 13 and 15, and preferably in close proximity to the sprocket wheels 15. To prevent the clogging of the space between the molds, the end walls thereof are cut on the bias, giving to the mold proper, in longitudinal cross section, substantially the contour of a parallelogram. The angularity of the two end walls are not exactly the same, so that when the molds aline the end walls touch at the front and the distance. between the said end walls increases toward the end of the molds, whereby any material coming between the molds is squeezed out toward the rear and will drop out therefrom. To insure the squeezing out of the material which finds its way between the molds, the forward edge 31 of the mold is made very narrow, making therefrom substantially a cutting edge.

As the packed mold passes over the bed 30 (see Fig. 6), rollers 32 provided on the rod 26 of the plunger of said mold come Patented July 17, ieiv.

garbage, lies in the path of travel under toes 33 provided on a lever 34, one end of which is suspended by a link 35 from the shaft on which the sprocket wheels 15 are mounted. The other end of said lever is suspended from an eccentric 36 actuated by a worm drive 37 from the drive shaft 18. l/Vhile the wheel travels over the bed 30, the eccentric 36 brings the lever down, depressing the plunger into the mold and, thus, compressing the material within the mold. The toes 33 are so arranged that the compression of the plunger is gradual and extends through a period of the travel of the mold over the bed.

To remove the formed bricks from the mold, the partially-depressed plungers are brought into engagement with another pair of toes 38 provided on a lever 34 beyond the bed 30. Theengagement of the plunger with the toes 38 (see Fig. 2) forces the plunger into the mold and shoves the brick out of the mold on to aconveyer 39 provided thereunder. The conveyer travels on suitable rollers 40 and is preferably propelled by a pulley 41 which is driven from a pulley 42 constrained to rotate with the eccentric 36. The plungers 25, as they travel from the sprocket wheels 13 to the sprocket wheels 14, will by gravity fall to the rear of the mold. To adjust the tension of the chains carrying the molds, the shaft of the sprocket wheels 14 is mounted in floating bearing blocks 43 suspended from screws 44.

I claim:

1. A brick-forming machine comprising an endless chain, means for actuating the chain, molds carried by the chain, means for feeding brick material. having a face plate over which the molds travel, a track for the chain at the face plate, yielding means connecting the track to the plate whereby the mold can move away from the plate when an object of high resistance lodges between the mold and feed, means for compressing the material in the mold, and means for forcing out the formed bricks.

2. A brick-forming machine comprising an endless chain, means for actuating the chain, molds carried by the chain, means for feeding brick material into the molds having a face plate over which the molds travel, a track for the chain hinged at one end thereof to the plate, yielding means connecting the other end of the track to the plate, means for compressing the brick material in the molds, and means for forcing out the formed bricks from the molds.

3. A. brick-forming machine comprising an endless chain, means for actuating the chain, molds carried by the chain, means for feeding brick material into the molds, a bed over which the molds filled with brick material are adapted to travel, a plunger associated with each mold, and a lever having means for engaging the plunger as the mold travels over the bed and means for engaging the plunger after the mold passes the 4. A brick-forming machine comprising molds, each having side flanges, chain links secured to the side flanges and adapted to form an endless chain, means for propelling the chain, a plunger for each mold, means limiting the movement of the plunger within the mold, feeding means for packing brick material into the molds against the plunger, a bed over which the molds are adapted to travel, a lever having toes above the bed to engage the plungers as the mold travels over the bed, and an eccentric for actuating the lever whereby the material within the mold is compressed during the travel of the molds over the bed, said lever having toes beyond the bed for engaging said plungers whereby the formed bricks within the mold are forced out.

GEORGE E. RICHMOND.

Copies 'of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents.

- Washington, D. G. 

